$4999
Includes Free Shipping*
Product Code: GIB-8200575
$4999
Gibson J-185 Century 12-Fret Acoustic Guitar (Vintage Sunburst) inc Hard Case
Online Stock:In Stock
Free Shipping
Support: 1 Year
Warranty: 3/yr
35 Years. One Massive Thank You.
Mannys Means Music - and it has for 35 years. To celebrate, we're giving one lucky customer a $3,500 store voucher
Between October 1st and December 31st 2026, spend $350 or more in-store or online and enter to win a $3,500 Mannys store voucher, on us! Enter with your order number via the entry form. T&Cs apply. ACT excluded. Purchase must be made between October 1st and December 31st 2026, 11:59pm AEDT. Entries close January 11 2027, 11:59pm AEDT.
Product Information
The Gibson J–185 Century 12–Fret is a refined take on a model that's occupied quiet favour among discerning players for over seven decades. First introduced in 1951, the J–185 draws its silhouette from Gibson's celebrated 1920s L–5 design, sitting slightly more compact than the SJ–200 whilst sharing the familiar 24.75” scale length of the J–45 and Hummingbird. This new 12–fret variant shifts the neck–to–body joint from the standard 14–fret configuration, a change that shortens the neck, repositions the bridge plate closer to the body's widest point, and fundamentally alters the top's response characteristics.
The 12–fret geometry enhances top movement and yields a warm, lively voice particularly suited to fingerstyle playing and lighter, nuanced touch. Built around a mahogany back and sides with Sitka spruce top, the body carries single–ply cream binding on top and back. The mahogany neck features Gibson's SlimTaper® 12–Fret profile and is joined via compound dovetail and hot hide glue at the 12th fret. Hardware includes bone nut and saddle, TUSQ® bridge pins, and open–back Golden Age tuners with cream buttons. The rosewood fingerboard sports 19 frets with understated mother–of–pearl dot inlays, whilst a sloped rectangle rosewood bridge echoes early J–45 aesthetics. Hand–applied satin nitrocellulose lacquer in Vintage Sunburst completes the finish.
12–fret jumbos remain uncommon in the current market, making this Century Collection edition a genuine opportunity to audition a tonal character typically restricted to vintage instruments or specialist orders. The guitar ships in a premium Century Collection tweed hardshell case, available in right– and left–handed configurations.
Features
- Mahogany back and sides, Sitka spruce top, single–ply cream binding
- Mahogany SlimTaper® 12–fret neck profile with rosewood fingerboard
- Scale length 628.7 mm, 19 frets, mother–of–pearl dot inlays
- Compound dovetail neck joint secured with hot hide glue at 12th fret
- Bone nut and saddle, TUSQ® bridge pins
- Sloped rectangle rosewood bridge, Gibson oval teardrop pickguard
- Open–back Golden Age strap tuners with cream buttons
- Hand–applied satin nitrocellulose lacquer, includes premium tweed hardshell case
